Elvis Presley's Granddaughter Is Grown-Up And Looks Just Like Priscilla Presley

Oct 05, 2020 by apost team

Trigger Warning: This article contains mentions of suicide that may be troubling for some readers.

Riley Keough, the gorgeous granddaughter of the man we knew as the King of Rock and Roll, looks just like her grandfather and grandmother.

As the granddaughter of Elvis Presley, Riley Keough knows what it’s like to be in the spotlight. With her granddad, mother and father all having made inroads in the music industry, one would have thought Riley would follow the same road. However, Keough instead pursued another avenue in the entertainment business and has since found success along the way.

Keough was born to the late Lisa Marie Presley, the only daughter of rock and roll megastar Elvis and his wife, Priscilla Presley. Riley’s father is Danny Keough, a musician Lisa Marie married in 1988 at the age of 21. The pair had two children – Riley, born in 1989, and her brother Benjamin, born in 1992.

However, Lisa Marie divorced Danny in 1994 and, 20 days later, married pop star Michael Jackson. Two years later, Lisa Marie filed for divorce from Jackson. In 2002, Lisa Marie wed actor Nicolas Cage and the couple stayed married for just three months before they, too, split. In January 2006, Lisa Marie married guitarist and producer Michael Lockwood. Her first husband, Danny, whom Lisa Marie had remained close to even after their breakup, served as the best man at her fourth wedding. Lisa Marie had two children with Lockwood, giving Riley two half-siblings in the form of fraternal twins, Harper and Finley. 

Born on May 29, 1989, in Santa Monica, California, Riley’s life took a tumultuous turn at the age of 6, when her parents divorced. While she admitted her life with her mother, Lisa Marie, was comfortable, she also appreciated the less luxurious lifestyle of her musician father, Danny. 

“I grew up very privileged with my mother,” she told The Guardian and added: “But my dad didn’t live like that. And I think experiencing both sides has been helpful. My father had mattresses on the floor of his apartments. He lived in cabins and trailer parks. He just didn’t have much money ... my memories of growing up with him were so colourful and eccentric and fun. It was a good vibe, you know?”

With a mom who was a singer and a rockstar dad, it would’ve seemed natural for Riley to venture into music. However, she admitted she never had the aptitude for it: “I played piano but I’m not particularly gifted.” Instead, it was movies and films that drew her attention.

“I know people say like, ‘Oh I saw Alfred Hitchcock, or ‘Citizen Kane’ but, for me, it was ‘The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys’ with Emile Hirsch. And ‘Moulin Rouge.’ I was 12 and I was like, ‘Wow, I want to be Nicole Kidman, she made me feel so sad!’ I remember thinking how fulfilling it would be to do that, which is a big concept for a kid,” Riley recalled.

Around the age of 10, the ambitious child had come up with a plan. “I was like, ‘I’m going to try and model, get my own money, and then I’m going to finish school, and I’m going to start acting after I’m 18, because I want to be a kid,’” she said.

apost.com

Things pretty much went according to plan for Riley. By 15, she was running the catwalks for brands such as Dolce & Gabbana and Christian Dior. By 20, she had scored her first major film role in “The Runaways,” a biopic of the band of the same name. She steadily built a name for herself with well-received turns in films such as “Magic Mike,” “Mad Max: Fury Road” “Logan Lucky” and “Zola.” Despite being lauded for her natural onscreen charm, Riley admitted she was initially plagued by the fear of being seen as a “nepo baby.”

“I grew up with my mom saying, ‘Anything you do in life, you’re going to have to take it seriously, and work really hard at it, and be really good at it. Don’t just dip your toes into things,’” she told InStyle magazine. “Which is my nature anyway, with acting and with things I want to be doing. I also had this thing where, when you grow up in L.A. and everyone's acting, I felt this sense of, oh gosh ... I was a little bit afraid to fail.”

Despite her famous heritage always being brought up as she made strides in her career, Riley is quick to point out she never met her legendary grandfather, who passed away 12 years before she was even born. Despite this, many assume Riley’s privileged background would show in her personality, but that doesn’t appear to be the case.

“(Riley) grew up in mansions and castles, and was exposed to all types of crazy, amazing things, but she's one of the most grounded people I've ever met – ever,” her “Zola” costar Taylour Paige said. 

Her career success would go on to match her success in her personal life: in 2015, at the age of 25, she married Australian stuntman Ben Smith-Petersen, whom she met on the set of “Mad Max.” While 25 could seem young to be married in this day and age, Riley didn’t see it that way. She said, “My mom had me at 21, and her mom had her at 21, so I think 25 is old. Marriage is just something I wanted to experience in my lifetime.”

However, tragedy would hit on July 14, 2020, when it was reported her brother, Benjamin, had taken his own life at the age of 27. His passing haunted their mother, Lisa Marie, who wrote a heartfelt essay on grief published by People on Aug. 30, 2022.

“It's a real choice to keep going, one that I have to make every single day and one that is constantly challenging ... But I keep going for my girls. I keep going because my son made it very clear in his final moments that taking care of his little sisters and looking out for them were on the forefront of his concerns and his mind,” she wrote.

On Oct. 21, 2022, Riley posted a tribute to her brother on Instagram with a picture of them as children and a caption that read: “You would be 30 today. Happy Birthday my best friend, my angel. This world is strange without you❤️”

Then, tragically, on Jan. 12, 2023, Riley lost her mother, who was found unresponsive in her California home. A statement by Riley’s representatives revealed Lisa Marie would be laid to rest at Elvis’s former residence, Graceland, in Memphis, Tennessee, next to her son Benjamin. 

Despite the Presley family's tragic story, their legacy continues on through the surviving family members, especially Riley, who has carried on the family's good looks.

We know that the late Lisa Marie definitely inherited her father's looks; her eyes and facial structure are reminiscent of the late musician but in a feminine way. Curiously, Priscilla Presley did not seem to have contributed as much to the genetic cocktail that made Lisa Marie a very pretty woman.

This is not to say that Priscilla was not beautiful; in fact, she was a ravishing redhead who captured the King's heart at a time when no shortage of gorgeous women fought for the chance to be Elvis's groupies.

Riley has made a splash in entertainment with her stunning looks and talent. She is a gorgeous woman who seems to get even more stunning as days go by. As she's grown up, Riley looks just like her grandmother.

Even though this charming woman has gone through a phase of wearing her hair blonde, it looks like she is returning to her natural redhead looks, thus recalling the sophisticated beauty that Priscilla Presley cultivated.

How do you think Riley Keough has fared in Hollywood so far? Have any of her performances caught your attention? Do you see the similarity between her and her famous grandparents? Let us know, and don’t forget to pass this along to friends and family, too.

If you or anybody you know is struggling with depression or suicidal thoughts, please visit Find A Helpline | Free emotional support in 130+ countries to find your local suicide prevention hotline. The hotlines provides 24/7, free and confidential support for you or your loved ones, and best practices for professionals.